Celtic captain Scott Brown has insisted he bears no ill will to Brendan Rodgers following the 46-year-old’s sudden departure to English Premier League side Leicester.
The midfielder’s remarks were in sharp contrast to the mood of the Parkhead support who made their feelings regarding the exit clear prior to Odsonne Edouard’s 92nd minute goal which gave Neil Lennon a 2-1 victory upon his return to the Celtic dugout.
A banner unfurled before kick-off underlined the anger over the timing of the move from the Parkhead support but Brown’s only focus now is on finishing the job that Rodgers started.
“There is always going to be a lot of stick but for me he was brilliant on a personal level and that is what really counts,” said Brown.
READ MORE: Neil Lennon savours the luxury touches but appreciates Celtic bar is higher than ever
“It is never going to be a great time to have a manager leaving but he has left us in a great place. We are 8 points clear in the league and we have 10 games left.
“It is always going to be a shock when a manager leaves a club. But we need to just continue what we are doing. He has left us in a great situation. We have won 7 trophies out of 7 since he came in and now we need to make sure that we need to keep going on for him as well.
“It’s been very hard losing a top quality manager. But it’s a top quality manager who has come in.
“We are all going to miss Brendan. He’s been fantastic for this club.
“For me, the club wasn’t in a great place two-and-a-half years ago. We were winning the league, but look at the football we were playing.
“Brendan re-energised the whole club. He took us in to the Champions League these last few years as well.
“For me personally, it was sad to see him leave.
“But we have another great manager coming in who will build on what Brendan has done and hopefully keep it going until the end of the season.
“I spoke to Brendan. I wished him all the best. He’s been unbelievable for me. I was written off this season, the season before, the season before, the season before....for me, he was unbelievable. He realised that I still had a couple of years left in my legs and he put a lot of faith in me and a lot of trust.
“It is just sad to see him go.”
Lennon will seek to take Celtic over the line now with Brown confident that the manner of Rodgers’ departure will not prove to be a distraction as the Parkhead side look to clinch what would be a historic treble.
READ MORE: How Brendan Rodgers' Celtic love affair ended in Leicester City exit
“As soon as a game comes along everyone’s head forgets about everything else,” he said. “It was a sad times with the manager leaving but the main focus for us was coming here and getting three points and that is what we managed to do.
“The gaffer is very positive and he just wants us to continue and keep doing all the things that we are doing. It is similar to what Brendan did and it is great because he has come in and realised that we have been champions for the last 7 years and he wants to maintain that this year.
“It’s a great win. Tynecastle is always a hard place to go to. When a team goes down to 10 men they get bodies behind the ball and look to counter attack.
“We just stuck to our own game. It might have been a sloppy goal but we kept fighting it was down to that never say die attitude. We keep going and we got a late winner, yet again.
“It was just a case of putting the ball in the box in the last couple of minutes. Luckily it ended up with one of our lads instead of out the park.
“It is huge. It keeps us 8 points clear at the top of the table and that is where we wanted to be by the end of this game so we have managed to do that.”
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